One minute the current council is getting sacked, the next it isn’t. There is talk of a caretaker period, and then there isn’t. We then hear that there are multiple dummy candidates (one might ask is there any other kind?) and that people are worried about and predicting an all-Indian council. Then we have former councillors putting their hand up to re-enter local government because the current council lacks leadership and unity.
That is the same argument that old footballers from 10 years ago were better than those running around today. It’s all in the eye of the beholder. To add to the wacky nature of the lead-up to the council election, we have a candidate who’s walking the streets of his ward as a human billboard. If his bid for office fails he will at least be fit and, who knows, a local business could hire him as a walking advertisement.
Another candidate continues to RSVP to events then never turns up, a clever way of keeping your name in people’s minds without doing anything. Trust me, this tactic is not endearing him to anyone. The pressure must be on internally at council headquarters, with one press release this week having three paragraphs repeated in the same document. The proof reader must have been on an RDO. The quotes are becoming more broad and less specific, which allows for less accountability and that wonderful political stance of saying something while really saying nothing. My vote leans to the latter: just say nothing.
Social media is feeding off all this and whipping itself into a lather. While most of it is biased dribble and personal insults which have nothing to do with actual issues, it does make for some entertaining reading at times.
The weekday ferry service is no longer, as predicted in this column a few weeks back. I sincerely hope that in the future it might be a viable proposition, and I have no doubt the weekend numbers will ensure that the service is a goer, especially in the warmer months, bringing tourists into the city and giving locals a different commuting option.
If you have any news or events, let me know at kevin@howdypartnersmedia. com.au
